If you have an iPhone there’s a really cool app called Homesnap. I’ve been having a lot of fun with it for about a month now. I heard about it via Katie Lance on an Inman | Next Webinar.

If you're out and about and see a place you'd like to know a little bit more about just take a picture of the property and everything comes to your iPhone.

I was on my way over Capitol Hill last week. There was no one behind me so I stopped and took a quick photo of this house using Homesnap. It’s not for sale, yet I got a great little profile about it.

I learned in fact it’s a duplex with 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, and is 2,350 square feet. It last sold on 9/28/04 for $499,000 and its estimated market value today is $556,400. If you lived here your kids would go to Lowell Elementary, Washington Middle, or Garfield High School.

As a guy who spent a few years in title property information I would have loved for my clients to have a tool like this. No more, “Can I get a property profile for the red house on the corner of 12th and John St?" I know, that kind of dates me. With Homesnap you can share the photo you took with the address on it and email it.

From what I’ve read Homesnap isn’t using photo recognition, it’s using the iPhone’s GPS and the accelerometer, a device that measures movement and gravity and like a gyroscope it knows how you’re holding the phone and if its vertical, horizontal, or at a tilt so it can determine which way the camera is pointed.

I had Homesnap running while I was driving through a neighborhood so I’d be ready to stop and take a quick shot. I looked at the screen and it was messaging me, “You’re moving too fast, slow down.”

Homesnap gives you a Smartzip HomeScore and InvestorScore to predict appreciation and investment potential. I’ll need to play with this more, but I think it’s handy to get these quick indicators.

I think Homesnap is a fun app and very useful. It creates a nice property profile. The one piece of info I wish it included was the assessor’s tax parcel number, but that’s really no big deal. I like the fact it’s plotted out on a Google map.

Homesnap is available in most metro areas. If the property is listed you get more info and pictures from the MLS. I’ve tried several listed properties around Seattle and this info isn’t available for any of my subjects. I’m thinking our NW MLS doesn’t want to play. So, my Homesnap profiles are being pulled from public record, which is just fine with me.

Homesnap is coming to Android phones soon. You can sign up for an early alert at:
sawbuck.com/homesnap-android

"Where there's conversation, there's opportunity."

Please Note - The views expressed herein reflect only the individual’s personal views
and are not the views of the author’s employer.

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René Fabre

René Fabre
cell: 425-749-9296
rfabre@firstam.com

 First American Title

First American Title
24722 104th Ave SE
Suite 100
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Posted by René Fabre on 07/15/2012 11:43 AM   Comments (7)   Miscellaneous Topic in the Technology and Tools Channel   homesnap  
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7 Comments on Homesnap, property profiles in one click.

JUL
15
366,508 Points 17 Featured Posts Localism Sponsor Outside Blog Hit Router Called Shot Master

Very cool app.  I wonder if our little MLS co operates.  I guess there is one way to find out ....
11:57am • #1
357,796 Points 27 Featured Posts Attended Rain Camp Called Shot Master

Virginia... If they don't I hope your public records are available.
12:10pm • #2
JUL
16
294,956 Points

What a great app! I'll definitely be putting that on my iPhone. Thank you so much for sharing!!
11:42am • #3
1,929,501 Points 155 Featured Posts Outside Blog Attended Rain Camp Called Shot Master

I love this app as well, especially when showing one home to a buyer and their is a home across the street that has a sign in front of it.
10:40pm • #4
JUL
17
357,796 Points 27 Featured Posts Attended Rain Camp Called Shot Master

Hi Todd: Exactly! 
8:07am • #5
245,951 Points Outside Blog Called Shot Master

Rene, I found out about HomeSnap on the Channel 2 news the other morning. I think that it's a good app to know about as a real estate agent.  It comes in handy when showing other homes in a neighborhood. it's also another reason to love my newer IPhone.
8:14am • #6
357,796 Points 27 Featured Posts Attended Rain Camp Called Shot Master

Hi Carol... Yes, another great tool... And it works so flawlessly. I also think it would be a great way for one of your clients to share what they've looked at with you. You'd have the property on your phone, its (more or less) verified so you know exactly the property they're looking at. If it's listed you can look it up on the MLS if not, call your title company for more info. 
8:19am • #7


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René Fabre

Seattle, WA

More about me…

First American Title

Address: 24722 104th Ave SE, Suite 100, Kent, WA, 98030

Office Phone: (253) 850-5230

Cell Phone: (425) 749-9296

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René Fabre is a blogger, teacher, artist, and speaker living in the Pacific Northwest. His passion is the evolving social media environment and how it impacts every level of our lives.

A certified clock hour instructor, René teaches new media marketing for the First American Title Real Estate School of Washington.

He also teaches social media for entrepreneurs and small business in the continuing education department at Bellevue College.

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